22 Apr 2025

The Ministry of Child Welfare and Basic Education will look into issues that hinder the opening of the newly constructed Maun Centre for Children with Severe and Multiple Disabilities. 

The Deputy Permanent Secretary in the ministry, Prof. Agreement Jotia said during tour of the P183 million state-of-the art facility recently that it was meant to improve access to education for children with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities as part of government’s commitment to educate all children regardless of their status. 

However, the facility which was handed to the ministry last year, had not been enrolling learners as some vacancies had to be filled while the contractor was  to also address teething problems as they arise. 

The centre is expected to admit a total of 100 learners from across the country aged four to 18 years with severe motor disabilities and low levels of alertness of which 80 would be boarders while 20 would be day scholars. 

Prof Jotia promised that government would look into the challenges especially pertaining to vacancies to ensure the centre absorbed learners. 

“Our priority is to appreciate facilities in our institutions so that we acknowledge the challenges and where possible try to bring some remedies,” he added. 

Prof. Jotia said the state of some facilities was pathetic, adding that some institutions had vacuum spaces that they called classrooms. He gave credit to teachers for demonstrating commitment despite the challenges they encountered. 

Prof. Jotia also commended employees at the centre saying in the midst of the difficult circumstances, they still found hope to come to work and be able to render their services so that the wheels of the government could move and the services reached the masses. 

He also acknowledged that government was considering the pillar of inclusive education for all. The facility, he said, stood as an example of inclusive education.

Prof. Jotia promised that the ministry would do all it could to get the facility running. 

He said the facility had to open doors to children, indicating that there were  a lot of cases from parents about issues of marginalisation of their children with disabilities. 

Earlier on, the centre coordinator who is also head of the Diagnostic and Rehabilitation unit, Ms Duduetsang Moroka, described the centre as one of its kind in the country, which would provide a holistic quality education and rehabilitation to children. 

The centre, she said would ensure that no child was left behind in education. 

She said currently the centre had employed 30 permanent and pensionable employees and eight temporary staff, stating that they still had vacancies for particular officers like rehabilitation personnel. 

She said they could not run at full capacity until such vacancies were filled because the rehabilitation personnel, which comprised of diverse professional, worked collaboratively to support children with disabilities. The intention, she said, was to have a phased approach to admit learners once the centre was fully operational. 

Ms Moroka also noted that the centre had a guest house and hostels but there was no basic furniture procured. The guest house would accommodate parents during their visit to check on their children. She also highlighted that some buildings could not be occupied because of electricity issues but appreciated that they had shared a list with the contractor to attend to. ENDS